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HAA and SiteMinder partner to boost Australia’s hosted accommodation

Sydney, Australia – HostedAccommodation Australia (HAA) – the B&B industry’s national peak organisation – and the hotel industry’s leading cloud platform, SiteMinder, have today announced a partnership that aims to boost the profile of Australia’s hosted accommodation sector.

The partnership provides HAA members with access to SiteMinder’s market-leading Internet booking engine, TheBookingButton, which will facilitate live online bookings from travellers anywhere in the world.

HAA President Sue Sciberras says TheBookingButton was selected for its user-friendliness and low subscription fees, which make it appealing to accommodation operators who have previously avoided online booking platforms because of their perceived complexity and costs.

“HAA believes TheBookingButton by SiteMinder will prove to be an effective means for our members to embrace online technology and, in turn, increase their visibility to today’s traveller,” Ms Sciberras says.

“The rapidly-changing face of the Internet can be intimidating, so a reluctance to move away from the more traditional, offline marketing practices is still quite prevalent within the HAA membership. But the world is changing and it is important we recognise that cloud-based technology is now the prime point of entry to a global travel network. Our members need to leverage this technology if our local industry is to flourish.

“HAA is confident that providing our members with affordable access to a market-leading platform, via SiteMinder, will increase their exposure to both domestic and international markets, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Ultimately, it is by increasing the profile of our local boutique sector that we will boost Australia’s hosted accommodation sector and tourism as a whole.”

TheBookingButton forms part of SiteMinder’s award-winning product suite, used today by more than 19,000 accommodation providers around the world. Using TheBookingButton, HAA members now have the ability to receive direct online bookings without paying third-party commissions as well as capitalise on the booking engine’s fully-customisable features, which integrate it seamlessly into a property’s website to deliver higher, measurable conversion rates and greater revenue.

SiteMinder’s Director of Sales – Pacific, Michael Kinloch, says: “SiteMinder’s partnership with HAA is a response to the pervasive challenges that today’s accommodation operator faces; trying to keep up with technology while trying to fill their rooms and tending to guests at the same time. With TheBookingButton, HAA members now have the opportunity to use the same type of easy-to-use technology that their competition, large and small, is using, both here in Australia and around the world. The difference is HAA members can get all the benefits but at an even lower cost.”

About SiteMinder
As the leading cloud platform for hotels, SiteMinder allows hotels to attract, reach and convert guests across the globe. We serve hotels of all sizes with award-winning solutions for independents and groups alike, wherever they are in the world.

SiteMinder’s products include The Channel Manager, the industry’s leading online distribution platform; TheBookingButton, a wholly-branded booking engine for direct bookings via the web, mobile or social; and GDS by SiteMinder, a single-point of entry to a six-figure network of travel agents and the world’s major GDSs. With more than 19,000 hotel customers and 350 of the industry’s top connectivity providers as our partners, today we have presence in more than 160 countries on six continents.